DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 17th July 2018

Top Story

After July spike, developers seek clues in next few months
New home sales in June dropped almost half from May – but the numbers will jump back up this month with the last-minute buying frenzy the night before a new round of cooling measures kicked in on July 6. Given the skewed performance in July – over 1,000 units in Riverfront Residences, Park Colonial and Stirling Residences were snapped up on the night of July 5 – market watchers expect the impact of these measures on buying demand to be more clearly felt only in the months ahead.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/after-july-spike-developers-seek-clues-in-next-few-months
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/private-home-sales-slump-adds-to-property-gloom
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/new-private-home-sales-slump-20-2-in-june-10534288
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/sale-new-private-homes-dropped-32-cent-first-half-2018-compared-2017

Singapore Economy

Amid global trade uncertainties, PM Lee urges S’poreans to build up economy, skills and productivity
Paris — In the face of uncertainties wrought by trade tensions around the world, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has urged Singaporeans to build up the country’s economy, investments, skills and productivity. He also called on Singaporeans to watch out for one another, and maintain their links with fellow citizens wherever they may be in the world.
https://www.todayonline.com/amid-global-trade-uncertainties-pm-lee-urges-sporeans-build-economy-skills

Singapore’s non-oil domestic exports miss expectations with 1.1% growth in June
Singapore’s June non-oil domestic exports (NODX) fell far short of economists’ expectations with a muted 1.1 per cent growth that was well shy of the 15.5 per cent surge in May. Economists had projected NODX to increase by 7.8 per cent year-on-year in June.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapores-non-oil-domestic-exports-miss-expectations-with-11-growth-in-june
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/growth-in-singapore-non-oil-exports-slumps-to-11-in-june-on-continued-slide-in
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/singapore-exports-june-rise-3rd-straight-month-10536766
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/singapores-non-oil-exports-notch-modest-increase-june

Golden Equator Capital and Korea Investment Partners launch S$120m startup fund
South-East Asian tech startups will soon have another S$120 million available to them. Golden Equator Capital (GEC), a Singapore-based fund management firm, and Korea Investment Partners (KIP), a Seoul-headquartered venture capital and private equity firm, are jointly launching a S$120 million venture fund for the region’s tech companies.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/startups/golden-equator-capital-and-korea-investment-partners-launch-s120m-startup-fund
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/120m-venture-fund-set-up-for-s-e-asian-tech-start-ups

STB, Alipay in campaign to woo more China tourists to Singapore
The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and online payment service Alipay will launch a campaign next month to attract more Chinese tourists to Singapore. Under the Singapore Passion Ambassador campaign, a group of Chinese “ambassadors” will be selected from a pool of high-tier Alipay members and sponsored to experience one of three itineraries to explore unique attractions, food, and retail outlets, all of which are Alipay merchants.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/stb-alipay-in-campaign-to-woo-more-china-tourists-to-singapore
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/stb-alipay-team-up-to-draw-more-chinese-tourists

KL representative to discuss HSR project with S’pore by month-end
Kuala Lumpur • Malaysia’s Economic Affairs Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali said yesterday that the country would send an official representative to Singapore by the end of the month to discuss the Singapore-Kuala Lumpur High-Speed Rail (HSR) project, the Bernama news agency reported. “I am in communication with our Singaporean counterpart. Last week, I was briefed by our Attorney-General (Tommy Thomas) and presented the case (to the Ca-binet) on Wednesday,” said Datuk Seri Azmin.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/kl-representative-to-discuss-hsr-project-with-spore-by-month-end
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/malaysia-singapore-high-speed-rail-discussions-by-end-july-azmin-10535054
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/khaw-says-spore-has-spent-over-s250m-hsr-presses-malaysia-its-position

Singapore Real Estate

Two freehold central sites up for en bloc
Summer Green is the latest condo to hit the collective sale market with a reserve price of S$48 million. The reserve price translates to a land rate of approximately S$1,178 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), inclusive of a development charge of approximately S$320,000, for the freehold site with 24 apartments.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/two-freehold-central-sites-up-for-en-bloc

Hub to explore how digital maps can provide urban solutions
Commercial drones may soon deliver medical supplies to hospitals or packages to homes, and people living in the same neighbourhood may carpool on-demand using an app. Behind these possibilities lies the use of maps infused with data – such as the flight paths of other drones and the location of tall buildings to avoid collision, or where students in the same school live so their parents could carpool.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/technology/hub-to-explore-how-digital-maps-can-provide-urban-solutions
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/govt-to-tap-mapping-tech-for-smart-living
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/geotech-start-up-singapore-geospatial-geoworks-sla-10534824

Companies’ Brief

UOL unveils deals to beef up its Indonesian hospitality portfolio
UOL Group on Monday announced that it has acquired 180 apartments and ancillary facilities at Thamrin Nine’s Tower 2 for US$56.3 million from Indonesian developer PT Pu-tragaya Wahana. It plans to develop the apartments into a 180-key Parkroyal Serviced Suites. Located in central Jakarta, Thamrin Nine is a 5.4-hectare mixed-use development – comprising apartments, hotel, offices, retail and other facilities – situated along Jalan MH Thamrin Jakarta Pusat, a prestigious address in Indonesia’s golden triangle.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/uol-unveils-deals-to-beef-up-its-indonesian-hospitality-portfolio

Keppel Reit to begin unit buy-back
Keppel Reit, which posted flat second quarter distribution per unit (DPU), plans to initiate unit buy-backs to enhance long-term total returns for unitholders of the trust, which its manager believes is undervalued. In view of the planned buy-backs, the Distribution Reinvestment Plan (DRP) will be suspended, the manager of the trust announced on Monday evening in its results statement for the second quarter ended June 30.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/keppel-reit-to-begin-unit-buy-back
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/keppel-reit-to-begin-unit-buybacks
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/keppel-reit-to-begin-unit-buybacks

Soilbuild Reit DPU dips 13.8% in Q2
Soilbuild Business Space Reit (Soilbuild Reit) has posted a distribution per unit (DPU) of 1.264 Singapore cents in the second quarter, down 13.8 per cent from the same period a year earlier. Gross revenue fell 13.1 per cent to S$18.7 million, while net property income fell 13.2 per cent to S$16.2 million.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/soilbuild-reit-dpu-dips-138-in-q2

Datapulse mulling purchase of Geo Hotel in Kuala Lumpur
Datapulse Technology on Monday said it has entered into a non-binding letter of intent with ICP Ltd to acquire MHI MY 1 Pte Ltd, a joint-venture company with an issued and paid-up share capital of S$1,500, and which is in the business of hotel investment. The target subsidiary, through its wholly-owned Malaysian subsidiary, owns a mid-scale hotel in Kuala Lumpur, currently operating under the brand “Geo Hotel Kuala Lumpur”. Upon the completion of a refurbishment programme, the hotel will debut as Travelodge Central Market, Kuala Lumpur.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/datapulse-mulling-purchase-of-geo-hotel-in-kuala-lumpur

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Sustainable property market benefits all
We thank the various Forum letter writers who discussed the recent property market measures. They include those by Dr Jeremy Teo (Many benefits to property curbs; July 9) and Mr Toh Cheng Seong (Tackle property bubble with targeted measures; July 11). The objective of the cooling measures is not to send prices down, but to moderate the property market cycle.
https://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/sustainable-property-market-benefits-all

The Big Read: Property cooling measures — examining the case for a ‘sledgehammer’
Singapore: The latest round of property cooling measures may have caught the market by surprise with its speed and severity, with an analyst describing it as “a sledgehammer to kill a fly”. However, the warning signs were there: High land prices, a jump in the number of new housing loans, and a wage growth lagging behind economic expansion were some of the red flags which prompted the authorities to take pre-emptive action, several experts said.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/property-cooling-measures-en-bloc-collective-sale-uncertainty-10533966

First signs of slight easing in growth momentum are at hand
Both Singapore investment firm Temasek Holdings and sovereign wealth fund GIC sounded a cautious note in their outlook when they released their financial results last week. And by no means are they the only ones. Investors worldwide are reassessing the risks facing the global economy. Despite notching a record-breaking S$308 billion portfolio under its belt, Temasek took pains to stress that growth is slowing. The global economy has been running above trend, it said. The firm expects growth to moderate while also seeing the probability of downside risks increasing.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/first-signs-of-slight-easing-in-growth-momentum-are-at-hand